


Beyond Reason

by DizzyDrea



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Sentinels & Guides, Bonding, Eventual Romance, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-09
Updated: 2020-11-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 17:05:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,036
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27130129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DizzyDrea/pseuds/DizzyDrea
Summary: After the confrontation with Krall, Nyota Uhura suddenly comes online as a Guide. She's devastated, but more than that, this will upend her life in ways she doesn't know how to face. Add in the fact that Jim Kirk is the only Sentinel compatible with her in the entire sector and her life just went from normal to complicated at warp speed. Finding a way forward won't be easy, but they've faced difficult situations before. Together, they can do anything.
Relationships: James T. Kirk/Nyota Uhura, Spock/Nyota Uhura
Comments: 5
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was one of my projects for Rough Trade. Since I've read a lot about Sentinels coming online, I wanted to explore a little bit of what it's like for a Guide to come online. The story hasn't changed a lot from what I posted for the challenge, but I have cleaned it up a bit. Enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: Star Trek belongs to Gene Roddenberry, CBS, Paramount, JJ Abrams, Bad Robot Productions and a lot of other people who aren’t me. I am doing this for fun and for practice. Mostly for fun.

~o~

Jim Kirk stepped off the train and headed across the plaza to 'Fleet Medical. At this time of night there were no crowds to dodge and only a few lights to simulate nighttime on Yorktown. 

He'd been awake anyway; he'd woken up out of a dead sleep about an hour before and since he didn't think he'd be able to get back to sleep right away, he'd picked up a book and made himself some coffee. When the call came in, it had only taken him a few minutes to throw on some clothes and catch the train from his temporary quarters in one of the residential districts.

Worry kept him moving, though he tried not to look like he was hurrying. He wasn't in uniform, but it still wouldn't do for a Captain to be rushing around like a green Ensign. There were plenty of officers in the upper reaches of Starfleet that still thought he had no business being Captain of the flagship, especially since what was left of said ship was currently being salvaged on Altamid.

He pushed through the doors to Medical, flashed his ID at the Security guard on the desk and headed for the lift. Once inside, he asked for the tenth floor and then hung on for the ride up. The lift car spit him out on the appropriate floor, and his own sense of urgency nudged him into a jog down the corridor.

He spotted a familiar face at the Nurse's Station and nearly skidded to a halt.

"Hey, Bones," he said, stupidly proud of himself for not even being out of breath.

Leonard McCoy turned to him, a grim expression on his face. "Jim, thanks for getting here so quickly." 

"Of course," Jim said. "What's going on?"

"Come on," Bones said. 

He turned and headed deeper into the ward, not even checking to see if Jim was following. It was only as they walked down the corridor that Jim realized where they were.

"Bones, why are we in the Isolation Ward?" 

McCoy turned that same grim expression on him again as he stopped in front of a door and keyed in a code. The door swished open, and Jim followed the doctor inside. He sucked in a startled breath when he saw what was on the other side.

"What happened?" he asked in a hushed voice.

There on the bed, asleep and looking pale and ashy, lay Nyota Uhura.

"She came in about an hour ago complaining of a headache," Bones said. He stepped up to the observation window, leaning against the glass. Jim joined him, totally transfixed by the view on the other side. "The doctor on duty went to give her a shot when she collapsed. He wasn't even sure what was going on until he got her onto a bio bed and saw the readings."

"What are you trying to tell me?"

Bones sighed. "That Lieutenant Uhura came online as a Guide about an hour ago."

"She—what?" Jim shook his head. "How is that even possible? I mean, there's nothing in her personnel file about latent Guide genes. And shouldn't she have come online during the whole Krall clusterfuck?"

"Unlike Sentinels, Guides don't tend to come online during traumatic situations," Bones said. "They're more likely to come online once the danger has passed. It's a… protective mechanism from what I've read. Considering that a newly online Guide would be vulnerable to, well, just about everything, I'm not surprised that it happened tonight."

"So, she was basically a ticking time bomb," Jim said.

"Pretty much," Bones said. "As for why her file didn't have any notations about her Guide status…"

"Patient privacy, yeah. Forget I asked," Jim said, waving him off. He glanced around. "Where's Spock? Has he been notified yet?"

"No," Bones said. He sighed, turning to lean back on the window and crossing his arms. "He's still listed as her medical proxy, but right now, given her status as an online Guide, I can't notify him without your permission."

"My permission?" Jim asked, shocked. "Why the hell do you need my permission?"

"Because you're the strongest Sentinel in this quadrant," Bones said. 

Jim waved his hand. "You know I don't put any stock in that shit, Bones."

"Be that as it may, the S&G Center would have my hide for a wall decoration if I didn't respect your position," Bones said. "You are, by virtue of your ranking, the Alpha Sentinel in this quadrant. That means that, for the time being, you are her guardian."

"Okay, okay," Jim said, holding up his hands in surrender. "So, does that mean you can tell me why none of us knew she was primed to come online as a Guide?"

"Her family declined testing when she was a child," Bones said. "And from what I can gather, she declined again when she entered the Academy. I checked with one of my colleagues back at the Academy Medical Center. He pulled her file to see if there were any notes from her intake physical."

"And?"

"And, according to the doctor who did her physical, she told him there were no Sentinels or Guides in her family, so there was no reason to test her," Bones said.

Jim could see his opinion of that clearly in the small frown on Bones' face. Most people wouldn't notice it, but Sentinels were trained to track micro-expressions, as well as changes to a person's scent pile. Bones was better than most at controlling his reactions, but he and Jim had practically lived in each other's' hip pockets at the Academy. Bones had little to no chance of hiding anything from him.

Right now, Bones was pissed. At whom was a subject for debate, but Jim could understand the reaction. So many records had been hidden, corrupted or outright deleted during the Eugenics War that it was difficult to piece together family histories in some parts of the world. Given that, it wasn't unusual for someone who had no idea their ancestors included Sentinels or Guides to suddenly come online. 

It made the doctors' jobs that much harder, but short of enacting mandatory testing, the best they could do was help the newly online Sentinel or Guide get a handle on their new skills.

"So, how is she?" Jim asked.

"At the moment, we have her sedated," Bones said. "We put her in a psionically shielded room to keep her isolated from the rest of the station."

"Any idea when you'll be able to wake her?" Jim asked. 

"Considering that she collapsed when she came online, I have no idea," Bones said. "I'm not a Guide expert, so I can't even speculate. I reached out to a friend of mine from the Academy. She specializes in treating Guides. I have a feeling we're going to need her before it's all said and done."

"Yeah," Jim said.

Normally, Sentinels and Guides were identified as they entered primary school. It allowed the local Center to educate them about Sentinels and Guides and teach them basic skills they could use when they came online so it wouldn’t be such a traumatic event. For the ones that were missed… well, it was a long and difficult road compounded by the need to totally redefine who and what they believed they were.

"Jesus, what a mess," Jim said. He rubbed a hand over his face. "When is your friend going to arrive?"

"Depending on what arrangements she's been able to make, maybe two days?"

"And Uhura will be okay until then?" Jim asked. 

His instincts were screaming at him to get in there and protect her, but he knew that wasn't going to serve her in the long run. She'd probably deball him for even thinking that she needed protection, and he liked his anatomy just the way it was.

"She'll be fine," Bones said. "I promised Raia I'd keep her informed as she travels. If anything changes, I'll let you know."

"Thanks, Bones," Jim said.

~o~

The next morning, Jim was sitting on the couch in the small observation room of Lieutenant Uhura's suite, attempting to read some sector reports on his PADD when Spock arrived. He tossed the PADD aside and stood up to greet his once-and-future First Officer.

"Captain," Spock said, nodding at him. "You wished to speak to me?"

"Yeah, I do," Jim said. "There was… an incident last night that I need to apprise you of."

"Has one of the crew been injured?" he asked. 

He glanced at the window into the Lieutenant's suite, but Jim had engaged the privacy mode, so all he could see was frosted glass.

Jim cleared his throat. "Lieutenant Uhura reported to Medical last night, complaining of a headache. She was admitted shortly thereafter. Apparently, she collapsed before the doctor on duty could administer any pain relief."

"Why was I not contacted immediately?" Spock asked. "She has not notified me of any changes to her medical proxy, so I should have been contacted as soon as she became unable to make decisions for herself."

"Ordinarily, you'd have been summoned right away," Jim said. He tucked his hands into the pockets of his Yorktown uniform. "There were… extenuating circumstances that made that impossible."

"I am not certain I understand you," Spock said. Jim could see the minute tightening around Spock's eyes, as well as the shift in his scent profile, suggesting his temper was rising, though outwardly he appeared calm. Vulcans were better than most other species at controlling their response to any situation, but even they had tells that Sentinels could find if they really paid attention.

"She came online as a Guide last night, Spock," Jim said quietly. "She collapsed from empathic overload, so she's been sedated until her readings level out. Bones called in a Guide specialist who should be here in a day or so."

Spock stood stock still, and Jim could almost see the gears turning in his mind, trying to make sense of what he'd just been told. Jim could relate; he'd stared at the Lieutenant in her bed for far longer than was seemly, just trying to wrap his brain around their new circumstances.

He reached out and pressed a button, disengaging the privacy mode on the window. Spock turned and looked at Uhura, still tucked into the bed, still looking pale, but not nearly as bad as she'd looked last night.

"She has never spoken about being a latent Guide," Spock said after some time had passed. 

"Don't," Jim said. When Spock turned a confused frown on him, Jim just shook his head. "Don't question whether or not she lied to you. You can't rewrite your whole relationship because of this. She didn't know, okay? None of us knew until it happened."

"May I inquire as to why you were notified first?" Spock raised an eyebrow, and expectant look on his face.

"Bones called me as soon as he found out," Jim said. "As you know, I'm an Alpha Sentinel, Spock. The strongest one in the quadrant, so Uhura is my responsibility. I'm the only one empowered to make decisions on her behalf at this point."

"Because she is a Guide," Spock said.

"Yes," Jim said with a firm nod. "There are hundreds of pages in the Federation charter about Sentinels and Guides. Earth was very specific about how we were to be treated, because our ancestors were persecuted during the Eugenics Wars. So, the doctors here really had no choice but to call me."

"I understand," Spock said. "Did Doctor McCoy tell you when I may see her?"

"I think he's waiting for the specialist to get here," Jim said. "At this point, despite the fact that I'm the Alpha here, I haven't even been in there. The room is psionically shielded to block out the ambient noise of all the people on the station, so it's best if no one but authorized personnel go in there for the time being."

"We had been discussing renewing our relationship," Spock said out of the blue. "We had dinner, and then returned to my quarters. She had worked a full shift in Station Ops, so when she declared that she was tired and wished to return to her quarters, I thought nothing of it."

"This wasn't your fault," Jim said. "You didn't do anything to bring her online. We think it was actually the stress of the situation with Krall. Guides will tend to come online after a crisis. Once they know they're in a safe space, that's when it happens. We don't know why it happens that way."

Spock tilted his head. "The empathic impressions of the crew during the attack on the Enterprise, coupled with the stress of captivity would have been overwhelming for a new telepath. It is perhaps understandable that nature has provided protection for Guides, so that their empathy isn't burned out at the moment it emerges."

"Very insightful, Spock," Jim said. "That's pretty much what Bones said."

"While Vulcans are touch telepaths, we are not the only telepathic species in the galaxy," Spock said. "And there are those among us who are capable of picking up ambient telepathic noise, for lack of a better term, from those around us."

"That must be difficult for you, considering that Vulcans actively suppress their emotions," Jim said. 

"Meditation offers us a way to process emotion—ours and those that we sense from others—so that we are not ruled by them," Spock said. "Nyota has joined me on occasion, though she has struggled in the past with achieving the necessary meditative state."

"That's probably not going to be an issue now," Jim said. "Though meditation is probably going to be difficult for her for a while yet."

Spock merely inclined his head in agreement. "Captain, with your permission, I will return to my duties. Please keep me informed of any developments in Nyota's condition."

"Of course, Spock," Jim said. 

Spock nodded, turned and exited the room. Jim sighed. That could have gone better, but he figured that as long as he was still in once piece, he'd consider it a win.

~o~

Jim found himself back in the observation room of Uhura's iso suite the next day, waiting for Bones to show up. He'd commed Jim that morning asking to meet after lunch. Thankfully, Commodore Paris had been accommodating once he'd explained the situation. 

Jim wasn't—technically speaking—Yorktown crew, but like many of the remaining Enterprise crew members, he'd been seconded to Yorktown until the Enterprise-A was completed. Those that weren't had been assigned to various starships in the quadrant with the promise that they'd be able to return to Enterprise when she was ready to launch if they wished.

He was eager to get back out into space, but he was also glad that they'd been at Yorktown when Uhura came online. At least on the space station she was closer to the specialists she needed.

Spock had agreed to join him, though he was keeping a silent vigil at the window, watching Uhura as she continued to sleep and recover. Jim would reprimand him if his instincts weren't prodding him where she was concerned. He was trying to focus on the reports he'd downloaded to his PADD when Bones came through the door, a beautiful woman right behind him.

"Ah, good, you're here, Jim," Bones said. "This is Doctor Raia Assanti, Daughter of the Third House of Betazed. Raia, Captain James T. Kirk, once and future Captain of the USS Enterprise."

"Captain," Raia said, smiling at him as she extended her hand to shake his. "I have heard a great deal about you. It's a pleasure to finally meet you."

"Doctor Assanti," Jim said, returning her smile easily. 

She was beautiful; tall, with dark skin and hair, and the typical black irises of a Betazoid. He could feel it when the Doctor's telepathy glanced across his mind. As a Sentinel, he was able to deflect it easily, which drew a nod of acknowledgement from her.

"Well met, Captain," she said. "I find that many Sentinels are not as adept as you seem to be at manipulating psionic energy. You are truly an Alpha to reckon with."

"Thank you, Doctor," he said. He turned to Spock where he stood a pace behind his Captain, as was proper. "This is my First Officer, Commander Spock. He is the Lieutenant's medical proxy. I asked him to join us, but if you'd rather not discuss her situation with him present, I'll understand."

"Commander," she said, nodding at him rather than extending a hand. Jim was pleased that she knew enough about Vulcans to not offer any unwelcome contact.

"Doctor," Spock said, giving his own nod in return.

"As you know, Captain, you are the current guardian for Lieutenant Uhura," Doctor Assanti said, returning her attention to him. "It is your right to include or exclude anyone you wish. I will accede to your wishes in this, but should anything change, please let me know."

"I will, thank you," Jim said. "And please, call me Jim."

"Very well, Jim," she said. "You may call me Raia."

"I've been keeping her up to date on the Lieutenant's condition," Bones said. 

"Any conclusions?" Jim asked.

"I believe Leonard is correct in his assessment of the Lieutenant's condition," she said. "Her readings are indicative of empathic overload, but her levels are evening out. I expect her to regain consciousness very soon."

"What happens if she doesn't?" Jim asked, because someone had to.

"In the Lieutenant's case, given her traumatic onlining, she may well remain unconscious for an extended period of time," Raia said. "That is to be expected, and nothing we should be concerned about. As long as her readings continue to improve, I'm confident she'll recover fully. If she remains unconscious for longer than 72 hours, we'll have to discuss a more direct approach."

"That sounds ominous," Jim muttered. "So, what are we talking about here? Telepathic contact of some sort?"

"From what I understand, telepathic contact with the new Guide would be uncomfortable, but also really the only way to reach her," Bones said.

"It is," Raia confirmed. "She will be particularly sensitive to telepathic contact as a newly online Guide, and she will naturally avoid telepathic contact with most species capable of telepathy, but since Betazoids access psionic energy at a deeper level than any other telepathic species, I should be able to reach her without upsetting the balance of her mind in any significant way."

Jim hadn't missed the flick of her eyes to Spock when she'd mentioned other telepathic species. Though she didn't know that Spock and Uhura were former—and potentially future—lovers, she'd probably guessed. Or she'd read the truth of it from Spock's mind. Jim had no idea if Vulcans could shield against telepathic contact from Betazoids, so he didn't know what she might have gotten from him just by being in the same room.

"But you believe that is unlikely to be necessary," Spock said. It was the first time he'd spoken since the Doctors had arrived, so it was a little surprising to hear his voice. 

"Correct," Raia said. "I will, of course, do a more in-depth examination of her now that I'm here. If anything changes once I've done that, I'll let you know, of course."

"I'd appreciate that," Jim said. 

"Captain, with your permission, I will return to my post," Spock said. "If you have need of me, please contact me at any time."

"Of course, Spock," Jim said. "See you later?"

Spock didn't speak, merely nodded at all of them and then took his leave. Jim watched him go, a concerned frown on his face.

"Well, he's delightful."

Jim looked at Raia, who'd turned to watch Spock go. Her tone of voice suggested she was intrigued by Spock instead of frustrated with him.

"He and Uhura used to be—"

"Yes, Jim, I'm aware," Raia said, smiling at him. "Not even the most powerful Vulcan has much hope of hiding that sort of thing from me. His worry for her is almost like another person in the room, despite his efforts to control it. She must be remarkable to have inspired such loyalty in him."

"Uhura is a strong, intelligent officer," Jim said. "And a loyal friend. We're all fortunate to have her as part of our crew."

"And she will be again," Raia said. She laid a hand on his arm, giving him a gentle squeeze. "You have my word on that. I'll treat her with all the care she deserves and see her returned to her previous life in good stead."

Most people naturally avoided physical contact with Sentinels, especially those in the know about what they were truly capable of, so he was a little surprised by her casual touch. But since she hadn't tried to initiate any more telepathic contact with the gesture, he took it for the reassurance it was meant to be and ignored it.

"Thank you," Jim said, a note of relief escaping his control. "I'll leave you and Bones to decide the best course of action for her. Just keep me in the loop. And of course, I'm available to you at any time if you need me."

"We'll set her to rights, Jim," Bones said. 

"I know you will, Bones," Jim said, flashing a small smile at his old friend.

He nodded to Raia and patted Bones on the shoulder on his way out. He wanted to stay; in point of fact, he wanted to be in the room standing guard over Uhura's bed, but he thought she'd object to that kind of caveman behavior. Plus, this instinctive need to be near her was freaking him out, so the sooner he got away from Medical and back to work, the better.

~o~


	2. Chapter 2

~o~

Nyota swam to consciousness, though it felt like she was swimming through syrup. She drifted in the twilight between sleep and wakefulness, trying to pull her thoughts together into something that made sense, but that seemed like too much effort so she finally abandoned it. 

When she was finally able to get her eyes to open, she immediately wanted to close them again. The room was too bright, and from the small glimpse she'd gotten before they'd slammed shut, she wasn't in her own room, which… what the hell?

"You can open your eyes now, Lieutenant. I've lowered the lights, so it should be a little more comfortable."

She cracked one eye open, and seeing for herself that the room was indeed less bright than when she'd tried before, she opened the other one. She'd never been in Medical on Yorktown, but she'd been to Sick Bay on the Enterprise before, so it wasn't much of a stretch to realize that she was in the infirmary.

A friendly—if worried—face drifted into her field of view.

"That's more like it," McCoy said with a smile. "You gave us all a scare, you know. Do you remember what happened?"

"I—" Nyota stopped and shook her head. Not because she didn't remember; more because she had to forcibly shake off the cobwebs in her brain. "I had a headache. Worst I've ever had, so I came to Medical to get a pain reliever. I don't—how did I end up in a room?"

McCoy grabbed a chair from somewhere behind him and set it down next to her bed. He fiddled with some controls over her head so that the head of the bed rose, allowing her to see him without craning her neck. When he'd settled in the chair and crossed his legs, he looked at her with something like expectation.

"What happened to me?" she asked.

"Two nights ago, you came online as a Guide," he said.

"What?" she asked—or maybe more like shouted, because he winced visibly. "I can't be a Guide! There's no history of Guides in my family; no one's ever even tested positive for the genes. There has to be some kind of mistake."

"Believe me, I wish there was," McCoy said. "Because this would be a whole lot easier if you were just dealing with a migraine headache."

"But how can you be sure?" Nyota asked desperately.

"We tested your DNA," he said. When she opened her mouth to object, he held up a hand. "You collapsed, and when the attending physician got you up on to a bio bed, your readings were off the chart for telepathic activity. Since we both know you're not a telepath, he called me and I authorized the test. We needed to confirm it because how we treated you depended on the answer."

"My parents declined to have me tested when I entered primary school," she said quietly. "They said there was no need, that we'd never had Sentinels or Guides in the family, so it wasn't necessary to do the test."

"I'm not sure why they would tell you that, but it's not true," McCoy said gently. "Sentinel and Guide genes always breed true, and they're always dominant traits, no matter which parent passes the genes on. When we tested your DNA, I had them run a test on your mitochondrial DNA as well. Your mDNA showed the Guide gene."

"My mother is a Guide?" 

She wasn't sure how she felt about that. Angry, certainly. Her mother had lied to her, quite possibly all her life. She felt cheated, somehow, of some piece of her heritage that she should have had. It had been a reckless gamble on her parents' part, to keep that from her and then send her out into the world with no preparation for something that huge and life-altering.

"Your mother has the Guide gene," he said, breaking into her thoughts, "but that doesn't mean she's a Guide. She may well never have come online. It happens a lot more than people realize because there are typically more online Guides than there are Sentinels at any given time. We think that Guides who remain latent do so because there's no chance of them finding a Sentinel."

"You seem to know a lot about this," she said.

He shrugged. "I got a crash course in Sentinel and Guide medicine when I realized my best friend was a Sentinel."

"Oh," Nyota said. 

Of course, he'd learned as much as he could. She often forgot that their Captain was a Sentinel. He didn't act much like one, and as far as she knew, he didn't have a Guide, so it was easy to just ignore that part in favor of the more… annoying parts of his personality.

"So, where exactly am I?" she asked as she glanced around the room.

"You're in an isolation suite in Medical," he said. "Your readings were all over the map after you collapsed, so we isolated you to get you stabilized."

"And how long do I need to be in here?" 

He sighed. "That's gonna depend on you. On how quickly you can form shields and on how strong they are. You won't be able to leave this room until you can."

"Great," she said. "I have no idea where to even start on something like that."

"Fortunately for you, I've brought someone in who can help with that," he said. "Do you think you're up to meeting her?"

"Who is she?" she asked.

"Her name is Raia Assanti. She's a doctor who specializes in treating Guides," he said.

"Assanti," she said. That name sounded familiar to her. "Betazoid?"

"Yes, she is," he said, surprise flashing over his face. "Daughter of the Third House, matter of fact. How'd you know?"

"I wouldn't be very good at my job if I didn't know anything about the other Federation worlds and the peoples who populate them," she said, raising one eyebrow.

"Of all the things you learned from that pointy-eared bastard," McCoy muttered. He shook his head with a rueful smile. "Okay, so you know who she is. Would you like to meet her?"

"Yes, please," Nyota said.

The door to the suite opened, and a woman she'd never seen before just about glided in. She was… beautiful, Nyota thought. Exotic, with her dark eyes and her flowing, dark orange dress. Her smile was kind, and Nyota felt immediately at ease with her.

"Lieutenant Uhura," Raia said. "I am pleased to meet you. How do you feel?"

"Doctor," Nyota said, nodding at the woman. "I'm fine, I guess. Maybe a little tired still."

"It's to be expected," Raia said. "And please, feel free to call me Raia."

"Raia," Nyota said. "I'm Nyota."

"Tell me, Nyota," she said as she stepped up beside McCoy, "can you feel anything from me?"

"I—" 

She stopped and focused, first on Raia and then on McCoy. Truth be told, she felt a little buzz that she thought might be Raia. It was like a hum in the back of her mind, and it had only started when she'd entered the room. She'd felt nothing at all from McCoy, which seemed… odd to her.

"I think I can feel a little something from you," Nyota said. She turned to McCoy, pinning him with her glare. "But I get nothing at all from you, and I know you're not a telepath, so what gives?"

McCoy tugged at his cuff and lifted his arm, revealing a slim metal bracelet. "This is a suppression cuff. Normally, it's used on telepaths that are having difficulty controlling their abilities."

"We've found that it also works well as a shield of sorts for mundanes," Raia said. "That is, of course, not common knowledge, and not something we'd like discussed outside this room."

"Of course," Nyota said. She looked down at her lap, then back up at McCoy. "Can I ask you something?"

"Absolutely," McCoy said.

"Can I—" She stopped and took a breath. She almost didn't want to ask, because asking would make this all too real, but she needed to know. "Will I be able to stay in Starfleet? On the Enterprise-A, when she's commissioned?"

McCoy looked up at Raia, who smiled at her. "Of course you will. There are whole sections of the Federation charter dedicated to Sentinels and Guides, precisely because your contributions are so valued. I will help you master your abilities, and then return you to your ship."

"Thank you," Nyota whispered. The relief that flashed through her on hearing those words made her feel weak as she sagged in the bed.

"Get some rest," McCoy said as he stood up, obviously reacting to her flagging energy. "We'll talk later, when you're up to it."

He lowered the head of her bed, and even though she'd slept for two days, she was more than halfway asleep by the time that McCoy and Raia reached the door.

~o~

After sleeping more than she had in an entire year, Nyota was finally beginning to feel more like herself. That was, of course, completely subjective, considering that she could feel something huge hovering just beyond her reach. Raia had told her that, as with any talent, one needed to master it in order for it to be of use. But she'd assured Nyota that she could master her empathy and bring real value to her ship and crewmates.

Nyota wasn't so sure, but she'd already decided that she wasn't going to let this be the thing that took her away from Starfleet and a job she loved. If she had to work harder than any Guide ever had to master her gifts, she would do it. She'd do a lot to be able to stay in the one place she felt like she'd always belonged.

To that end, she'd been reading all morning. Raia had brought a PADD with several books and a host of articles all about Guides and their gifts. Most were written by other Guides, but there were a few written by researchers and even one written by a non-Guide telepath. 

She'd started there because she thought it might be a good idea to learn how Raia viewed her Guide gifts, considering she'd be helping Nyota learn how to master them. Raia, it turned out, was a gifted writer in addition to a powerful telepath specializing in the treatment of telepathic and Guide gifts.

Her door chimed, pulling her attention away from the article she'd been trying to read. She'd begun to tire, which had frustrated her, but she'd kept reading, hoping to be able to power through the fatigue. Having a visitor might not be a bad idea, considering she'd read the same paragraph three times and still had no idea what it said.

"Come," she said with a sigh, dropping the PADD on her bedside table.

The door swished open to reveal Spock standing on the other side. To most people, he just looked Vulcan, but she knew better. He looked uncomfortable and unsure of his welcome.

"Spock," she said, offering a small smile. "Please, come in."

"Nyota," he said as he entered the room. 

He stopped near the foot of her bed, hands clasped behind his back. He didn't say anything, just stood there. She knew she shouldn't, but she couldn't help herself. She focused on him, and on reaching out to him with her mind. Her head jerked back when she felt like she'd hit a brick wall.

Spock just raised one eyebrow.

Nyota shook her head, then just shrugged when he still wouldn't say anything. "Sit down, Spock."

He took the seat that McCoy normally chose and folded his hands in his lap. "Are you well, Nyota?"

"As well as can be expected, I suppose," she said, shrugging again. "To be honest, I doubt it's going to be the empathy that I struggle with. I still have no idea why my mother didn't tell me about the Guide genes in our family. I've sent her a message but she hasn't responded."

"Perhaps it is enough to know that she loves you and only seeks the best for you," he said.

"And yet here I am, in the infirmary because I came online traumatically," she said with a huff.

"When I met your mother, I found her to be highly protective of her family," Spock said. "Do you doubt this?"

"No," Nyota said. "But she's always had these… expectations. Me graduating near the top of my class and being assigned to the Enterprise fit those expectations. What if becoming a Guide didn't?"

"I believe you will not have the answer to that question until you speak to her," he said.

"I'm not sure I want to," she said. She took a deep breath and tried to shake off the melancholy that talking about her mother always brought. "So, how are things on the station? I feel so out of touch in here."

"The station is functioning optimally," he said. "Commander Finnegan has expressed his regret that you will not be joining him in Ops for the foreseeable future."

Nyota snorted. "He'll survive it. Besides, he only wants me there so he can lord it over the Captain. I swear, their juvenile posturing makes me want to vomit."

"They do have a rather adversarial relationship," Spock said. "I have observed that they seem to enjoy their verbal volleys, though I believe they prefer to settle their disputes on the parisses squares court, which is, I believe, a more appropriate venue."

"For a broken neck, maybe," she said with a snort. 

"Did you not play parisses squares at the Academy?" he asked, again with that damnable eyebrow raised.

Nyota rolled her eyes. "Yes, I did. And I was damned good at it."

"Then I fail to see the logic in denigrating the Captain's preference for the sport while boasting of your own accomplishments," Spock said.

"I guess I'm just an illogical human," she said. "But I'm sure you didn't come here to talk about that. What's going on?"

"I wished to talk to you about the wisdom of continuing our relationship," he said calmly, like he hadn't just dropped a bomb in the room.

"Spock, I—"

Whatever she was going to say died on her lips. The truth was, them trying to keep their romantic relationship alive was probably a non-starter to begin with. Being a Guide didn't just complicate it, it made it an impossibility. Raia had explained that, because of the way Guides used psionic energy as the basis for their empathy, telepathic contact with Vulcans would be uncomfortable at best. And Spock, as a Vulcan male—even half-human as he was—would eventually need a bond. 

She couldn’t stay with him and deprive him of something so fundamental to his very being. It would be incredibly selfish, and she still loved him enough to let him go so he could find the person he was meant to be with.

"I know," she said instead. "As much as I would like for things to be different, they aren't. It's not fair for me to keep you from finding someone who's compatible with you. Someone who can embrace all that you are. I know I haven't always been that person, and I'm sorry for that."

"No apologies are necessary, Nyota," Spock said. "I will always treasure the memories of the time we have spent together. I consider you a valued friend, apart from anything else we have been to each other. I would be pleased if we could continue on as friends."

"Of course we can," she said. "I don't want to lose your friendship. Plus, we'll be working together on the Enterprise. I don't want things to be awkward for us aboard ship."

"Then you will return to your duties?" he asked.

"I will," Nyota said, and if she added a bit more force than necessary to that statement, well, that was just a promise to herself.

"Then I will look forward to that day," he said. "I will let you rest now. If I can be of any assistance, please contact me."

"Thank you, Spock," she said. 

He stood and nodded to her, then turned and walked out the door. She hadn't expected her relationship with Spock to end today, so she wasn't really prepared mentally for it. Thankfully, being in an isolation suite meant that she couldn't feel emotions from anyone outside the room, but it also meant no one outside could feel her emotions either.

Nyota reached out and adjusted the bed so she was mostly laying down, dimmed the lights and curled up under her blanket, softly crying herself to sleep.

~o~


	3. Chapter 3

~o~

"Hey, Bones," Jim said as he tapped on the open door of his friend's office.

The doctor was standing at the low console against the long wall of his office, pouring himself a drink. He looked up at Jim's greeting.

"Hey, Jim." He waggled the bottle of alcohol he was holding. "Drink?"

"That depends," Jim said as he walked into the office. "Is this going to be that sort of conversation?"

Bones wobbled his head back and forth. "We'll see."

"That's not at all ominous," Jim said. "Pour me a drink, then."

Bones poured two fingers of amber liquid into each glass, handing one to Jim as he headed for the couch and chairs near the window. Jim raised an eyebrow, took the glass and joined his friend.

The doctor merely raised his own eyebrow as he deliberately took a sip of his drink. Taking the hint for what it was, he sipped at his own drink, following the burn all the way down his throat. It wasn't nearly as good as the bourbon they'd had on Enterprise before the whole Krall clusterfuck, but it was still pretty good, and Jim was that rare Sentinel whose senses could handle alcohol with little issue.

"So, are you gonna tell me what's got you so worried, or do I have to play Twenty Questions?" Jim asked when it seemed like Bones wasn't going to explain why he was there.

"It's about Lieutenant Uhura," Bones said.

"Something wrong?" Jim asked. 

He'd stopped by to check on her every day, but hadn't actually gone into her room. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk to her; more that he knew from personal experience that, especially for a new Guide, meeting a Sentinel for the first time was overwhelming. He didn't want to burden her with that weight on top of learning how to use her Guide gifts, so he'd stayed away. And seeing how she was being treated and how well she was handling her gifts went a long way toward blunting some of his baser instincts.

"Nothing's wrong, per se," Bones said.

Jim just stared at him. "You know I can see through you like transparent aluminum, right?"

Bones huffed. "Goddamned Sentinels." 

"So, what's really going on?" Jim asked. 

"Uhura's doing well," Bones said. "Raia says that she's testing out in the upper reaches of online Guides. Best guess at this point is that she'll be an Alpha Guide when she bonds."

Jim whistled. "Wow. And you had no idea she was latent?"

"None," Bones said. He took a sip of his drink. "She's… not happy with her mother right now. She feels betrayed, and I think she will for a long time."

"Not unusual for a Guide to react strongly to being lied to," Jim said. "Any idea when she'll be released from the iso suite?"

"That's where things get a little sketchy," Bones said. "She's a strong Guide, but she wasn't at all prepared to be a Guide, so her shields may be an issue. Raia's going to start letting her out for brief periods to test her shields. If she does well, we'll probably be able to release her to private quarters, though she'll have to move to a shielded apartment for her own safety."

"Makes sense," Jim said. "It's why I declined to live at the BOQ. None of those apartments are shielded, so I'd be able to hear and smell everything. There are so many telepathic species now that they converted the building I'm in to fully-shielded apartments."

"And that'll likely be where Uhura will end up if we're able to release her," Bones said. "The thing is, even if she's able to live on her own, it likely won't last. Raia believes that Uhura will do best if she bonds sooner rather than later."

"Because once she's bonded, she'll be able to rely on her Sentinel to bolster her shields," Jim said. "She's not going to handle that well, you know that, right?"

"Oh, trust me," Bones said. "I'm not the one that's going to have to have that conversation with her. That's all Raia. I'm going to stay well out of it."

"You're not afraid of her, are you?" Jim asked.

"You're damned right I am," Bones said. "And with good reason."

Jim chuckled. "Well, we've still got another six months at least before the Enterprise-A is finished. Plenty of time to find a compatible Sentinel."

"You know, you didn't used to be this thick," Bones said. "She's going to be an Alpha Guide, Jim. That means we'd need to find an Alpha Sentinel to bond with her. Know any of those?"

"What, you want me to bond with her?" Jim asked incredulously. "Bones, she's my Communications Officer. She's dating my First Officer, for fuck's sake. Plus, I'm not exactly her favorite person. I doubt she'd even want to bond to me."

Bones sighed. "You've earned her respect; I hope you realize that."

"Yeah, I do," Jim said. "But that doesn't mean she'd want to tie herself to me."

"Stranger things have happened," Bones said.

"Look, I'm not opposed to bonding, you know that," Jim said. "I'm well balanced on my own, so bonding hasn't been a priority for me, but that doesn't mean that I've dismissed it as a possibility."

"I know," Bones said. "But the reality is that if Uhura doesn't bond, we may have to put her in a suppression cuff if she can't get a handle on her gifts. That could do real harm to her at this point."

"It's that bad?" Jim asked.

"Right now? No," Bones said. "But she's in an iso suite, so she's not being exposed to the empathic burden of the station. I have no idea what'll happen once she steps out of that room, and neither does Raia. But we have to be prepared for every eventuality."

"I don't want to disrupt her life, Bones," Jim said quietly. "I know I have a responsibility to her, but at the same time, I don't want to put a whole heap of expectations on her, especially with her and Spock reconciling. But if a bond would serve her best, I can offer her a platonic bond. It would solve the immediate concerns, and allow her to continue with her life. I mean, I'm not opposed to a sexual bond, but it's really up to her. I'm sure she's eager to get back to her duties, and this would at least allow her that."

"You know the statistics as well as I do," Bones said, pointing at Jim. "Platonic bonds don't stay that way. Within five years, the vast majority of platonic bonds end up in romantic relationships. Exclusive romantic relationships."

"I know," Jim said. "And there's no guarantee that we'd even be compatible, but I don't want to be yet one more person who takes her choices away from her. She's had enough of that in her life."

"Now's not the time to be noble, Jim," Bones said. 

"I'll talk to her," Jim said. "Just let me know when Raia's ready for me to have that conversation and I'll come."

"Just—I know you're stable, and that you don't really need to bond, but bear in mind that once you step into that room, your instincts may be asking something different from you than your rational mind would," Bones said quietly.

"Is that your subtle way of telling me that I might be compelled to bond with her?" Jim asked, slightly amused.

"I'm saying you need to be prepared to listen to your instincts," Bones said. "You're usually good at that, but past romantic entanglements suggest you don't always have the best luck with women."

"Okay, I'll admit that dating Carol Marcus was a stupid idea," Jim said. "But I'm not going to regret Gaila. Ever."

"Right," Bones said. He tossed back the rest of his drink. "Just one word of advice: don't tell Uhura that."

Jim winced. "Noted."

~o~

Jim stood in the observation room, watching Lieutenant Uhura read from her PADD; there was something endearing about how she nibbled on her thumbnail as her eyes flicked back and forth on the screen. He knew he was stalling, but since he was alone in the observation room, there was no one to call him on it. 

The thing was, the second he stepped into her room, both their lives were going to change. He'd told Bones that he wasn't opposed to bonding, and that was the truth. He'd known it would happen someday, but since he did well on his own, he'd deprioritized it in favor of pursuing his career.

Not that there wouldn't be those in the upper-reaches of Starfleet who'd breathe a sigh of relief when he bonded. There were some who still believed that an unbonded Sentinel had no business captaining a starship, much less the flagship of the fleet. He'd set out to prove them wrong each and every day, and felt, on the whole, that he'd succeeded.

Still, he knew there was every chance that when he left Uhura's room, things would be different. He wished he could say that he didn't want that, for Spock's sake if nothing else, but he'd be lying, and that was one thing Sentinels just didn't do.

Nyota Uhura was strong, fierce and loyal. She was an amazing woman who had the ability to command respect and yet she also had an endless capacity for compassion and tenderness when called for. She was the sort of woman—the sort of Guide—that any man would be proud to stand beside.

Jim huffed. It was way past time to stop stalling and get on with it. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. When he thought he was ready, he squared his shoulders and headed for the door.

Uhura looked up when the door swished open. He offered her a confident smile as he stepped into the room and headed for the chair next to her bed.

"Lieutenant," he said as he settled in.

"Captain," she said, eyebrows raised in surprise. "I wasn't expecting you."

"I can come back, if you're not up for a visitor," he said.

"No, it's okay." She set her PADD on the bedside table and turned her full attention to him.

He could feel the brush of her empathy in what was likely a reflex for her. He was able to nudge the probe aside very gently, but in doing so he could feel the way their energies synced. It answered the question of whether or not they were compatible. Bonding would likely be easy for them, and could happen without much effort at all, so he'd have to be cautious.

"How are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm good, I think," she said. She lifted one shoulder in a half shrug. "I mean, I have no idea how I'm supposed to be doing, but Raia says I'm handling things well."

"That's good," Jim said. "I met Raia when she first arrived. She's quite a woman, and she knows her stuff. I felt good about leaving you in her care."

Uhura wrinkled her nose. "They told me about that. About how you're the ranking Sentinel in the quadrant, which makes you responsible for me. I'm not sure how I feel about that."

"If it helps at all, I'm not inclined to make unilateral decisions about your life," he said. "If they need me to weigh in, I will, but I don't plan to take your ability to choose away from you."

"Thank you," she said. "That does help."

"Good," he said. "I want you to be able to trust me."

"I do trust you, Captain," she said. "Maybe that's because I've been a latent Guide all this time, I don't know. Raia says that Guides will naturally trust Sentinels, so maybe that's it. But I trusted you before that. You've risked your life for me—for your crew. How could I not trust you?"

"Then maybe under the circumstances, you could call me Jim," he said with a smile.

"Jim," she said, as though she were testing the word on her tongue, but he felt it like a punch to the gut. "I'm Nyota."

He would have liked to gloat about how he'd finally gotten her to tell him her first name, but he was still reeling from hearing his name on her lips. Suddenly, he could see how it would be between them and he wondered at the sanity of a platonic bond. But he hadn't lied to Bones; he wanted her to feel comfortable, so offering her the freedom of a platonic bond felt like the right thing to do.

"Alright, Nyota," he said. He cleared his throat. "I had a really awkward conversation with Bones about bonding the other day. Has Raia talked to you about that at all?"

"She's explained bonding to me," Nyota said. "A lot of telepathic races have something similar."

"Considering there are no human telepaths, Guides are unusual," Jim said. "And the fact that Sentinels aren't telepathic at all makes what we can achieve together something truly special."

"Who knew you had a romantic streak?" Nyota said, a hint of a smile passing over her lips. The smile faded quickly and she started nibbling on her thumb again. Jim stifled a groan as she sat there unaware of her own appeal. "What if—"

When she didn't finish her sentence, Jim frowned. "What if what?"

Nyota shrugged and looked away. "What if I don't find a Sentinel? What if there isn't a Sentinel out there that wants the burden of a Guide who didn't know she was a Guide?"

"Nyota," he said. When she wouldn't meet his eyes, he reached out and laid a hand on her leg where it rested under her blanket. Her head swung around, eyes as big as saucers. She probably didn't understand what she was feeling, but he did. He understood all too well. "You are a bright, beautiful, successful young woman. There isn't an unbonded Sentinel in the quadrant who won't be drawn to you. But you're also allowed to choose. And if a Sentinel can't see just how well you're adapting, then you don't want him for your Sentinel, anyway."

"Thank you," she whispered.

He pulled his hand away, itching to flex his fingers to rid himself of the tingle she left behind. "Bones tells me that Raia is hoping you'll be able to stabilize your shields well enough to move into shielded quarters. And if you can, there won’t be any urgency to finding a Sentinel."

"And if I can't?"

"If you can't, then you and I can talk about bonding," Jim said without hesitation. "You're quite likely an Alpha Guide in the making. Given that I'm an Alpha Sentinel, I think we'd do well. We would, of course, keep the bond platonic out of respect for your relationship with Spock."

"Spock and I… we decided it was best to just remain friends," Nyota said. 

"Oh," Jim said. He allowed the ripples of shock to flow through him. "I guess I thought you guys had already gotten back together."

"We've talked about it," she said. "But in the end, I can't be what he needs, and that would be true even if I wasn't a Guide."

"Is this going to be a problem when the new ship is launched?" he asked.

"No, it won't," she said. "We're fully capable of acting like adults. And we were friends, once upon a time. I think we still can be."

"Good," he said. "I'd hate to lose either of you because of this."

"I do have a question, though," she said.

"Shoot," he said, settling into his chair more firmly.

"You and Raia keep talking about platonic and sexual bonds," she said, "but I have no idea what that even means."

Jim wanted to facepalm, but he thought that wouldn't be dignified given the circumstances. He settled for rolling his eyes.

"I thought Raia talked to you about bonding?" 

"She did," Nyota said. "And I asked all the questions, trust me. But somehow, she never really got around to answering that one."

"Figures," he muttered. Clearing his throat, he met her eyes. "Bonding is bonding, no matter how it's achieved. When we talk about platonic versus sexual bonds, what we're really talking about is the path to achieving the bond."

"Is one way better than the other?" she asked.

"No," Jim said, shaking his head. "Sexual bonds tend to form quicker, but you're not any less bonded than if you'd gone at it through non-sexual means."

"I guess that makes sense," she said. "Is the bond permanent?"

"Insofar as we don't have to do anything to maintain it once it's formed, yes," he said. "But if there ever came a point where we no longer wanted to be bonded—for whatever reason—it can be broken."

"Huh," she said. "I wasn't expecting that. Most telepathic species bond for life, so I guess I assumed the same would be true for Sentinels and Guides."

"There are a lot of aspects of the Sentinel and Guide phenomenon that we just don't talk about with outsiders," he said. "Some parallels can be drawn, but we really are unique in the universe."

"In other words, check your assumptions at the door," she said. "I think I'm going to be studying this for the next twenty years."

"Nah," he said, winking at her. "I give you a year, two tops, and you'll be the expert."

~o~


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I've done it correctly, you should be able to just hover your mouse over the Kiswahili phrases to get the translations. I've added them in a note at the end, just in case you're mobile while you're reading this.
> 
> Also, apologies to anyone who speaks Kiswahili. I used Google Translate for this, so I can't vouch for the accuracy.

~o~

"How are you feeling?" Raia asked.

Nyota cocked her head. "I feel… good. Relieved. Normal."

"Good," Raia said with a smile.

They were walking through one of the plazas on Yorktown, testing Nyota's shields. So far, she'd managed to maintain her shields with very little effort. The first time they'd taken this walk it had been early in the morning and she'd had a headache after barely 15 minutes. Today they were walking at lunch, so the plaza was much more crowded and she was blessedly headache free.

"This is the third day in a row we've taken a walk and you've not reported a headache," the doctor said after a few quiet minutes had passed. "I think you're ready to be released to your quarters."

"Really?" Nyota asked. She wasn't able to keep the pure joy out of her voice, which drew a smile out of Raia.

"Yes, really," Raia said in that patient voice usually reserved for young children. "We will, of course, continue to work on your skills and your shielding in the iso suite, but you should be able to live comfortably in a shielded apartment going forward."

"That's where Jim and Spock are staying, right?" Nyota asked.

"Yes," Raia said. "Due to the number of telepathic species within the Federation, shielded quarters were considered a requirement for any new ships or stations that Starfleet builds. I'm also staying in the same building, so I'll be nearby should you need me."

"I am so ready to get out of the iso suite," Nyota said. "It's—I feel—"

"Trapped," Raia said. "Like a fly in amber, to borrow a human expression."

"Exactly," Nyota said. "I hate that my comings and goings are so closely monitored even though I understand why. I guess I'm just not used to being watched. It's a little unnerving."

"If it makes you feel any better, it's less to do with the fact that you're a Guide and more to do with the fact that you were unprepared to be a Guide," Raia said. "If you'd received training and education when you were younger, you'd have been in a better position when you came online. But, once you master your gift, you won't need to be monitored anymore."

"Thank god for that," Nyota said. "It'll be good to be independent again."

Raia chuckled. "You will still need to be careful, Nyota. As with any new skill, overuse will not serve you. Pushing yourself to do something before you're ready is just as detrimental as remaining untrained."

"Yeah, well, that headache the other day convinced me that pushing too hard too fast will only end in pain," Nyota said. "And trust me when I say I have zero desire to do that to myself again."

"Good," Raia said. "Have you given any thought to bonding? Even though you're doing very well, a bond would afford you an extra layer of shielding. In your situation, that's a benefit worth considering."

Nyota shrugged. "Thought about it? Yeah, it's pretty much all I can think about."

"And did Captain Kirk come talk to you, as he said he would?" Raia asked, one eyebrow raised.

"He did," Nyota said with a huff. "He was really uncomfortable the whole time. Even though he deflected my empathic probe easily, I still caught how much he didn't want to be there. It was… disheartening, at first."

"Nyota, you know you shouldn't be doing that," Raia chided her. "With those we know and care about, it's improper to scan them without permission."

"I know," Nyota said. She shrugged. "I couldn’t help it. He's the only Sentinel I've spent any time with. I was curious."

"And could you ascertain why he might not have wanted to be in that room with you?"

"Not using my empathy," Nyota said. That frustrated her more than she wanted to admit. She caught random feelings and impressions from the people around her, but without context or the training to know what those impressions meant, she was lost. She sighed. "He was really uncomfortable talking about bonding, though. He seemed surprised that you hadn't explained sexual versus platonic bonding."

Raia grinned. "I'm sure it was good for him to be a little off-balance."

"You did that on purpose," Nyota said, eyes narrowed in suspicion. "So that we'd be on more equal footing in that conversation. Huh. That's devious. I like it."

"I'm glad you approve," Raia said with a wink. "But you still haven't answered my question."

Nyota sighed again. "Just those few minutes alone with him was like… home. He was like home and shelter and safety. It made me realize why Sentinels and Guides seek out bonds. To have that with someone else would be amazing."

"And the fact that it's James Kirk that makes you feel those things?" Raia asked, one eyebrow raised.

"A couple of years ago I'd have punched you for suggesting that I bond with Jim," Nyota said.

"And now?"

"He's changed," Nyota said. "He's grown up, for lack of a better term. He understands responsibility and duty in ways I didn't think he ever would. He still takes risks, because that's part of the job, but he always does it with the right intentions. I think I could be bonded to a man like that. But there's been so much change in my life over the last couple of weeks. I'm not sure if I'm ready for one more change."

"That's fair," Raia said. "I just want to make sure you consider all your options. You're stable enough that you don't need to bond, but a Guide can't come into the fullness of their abilities until they do. So, in addition to considering what bonding will do for you personally, I also want you to consider what it will do for your ability to serve on your ship."

"I hadn't thought of it that way," Nyota said. 

Raia just hummed. "Now, let's go look at your new apartment. Your things should already have been moved, but we should still make sure you're comfortable there before we commit to you staying there."

~o~

Nyota fidgeted in her seat as she waited for the subspace comms system to connect her call. 

She'd been in her new quarters for several days, unpacking and arranging the place to her satisfaction. It felt decadent to be living in a full-fledged apartment when most of her peers were stuck at the BOQ as she'd been prior to coming online. The BOQ wasn't bad, per se. Each suite had a kitchenette, living area and a bed, but it was more like a studio apartment because most of the 'Fleet personnel ate at the mess in the HQ building.

Now she had a full kitchen, a living room and a separate bedroom and bath. It was small, but still larger than her quarters in the BOQ. And it hadn't taken her more than an hour to fully move in. She'd moved the furniture around several times, added new pieces and taken some away, all in an effort to avoid making the call that was currently connecting.

She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but she knew she needed to stop pretending that talking to her parents wasn't important.

The screen switched from the 'Fleet logo to the smiling face of her father, Alhamisi Uhura.

"Nyota, msichana wangu mtamu," he said, smiling from ear to ear. "When I saw who it was on the comms, I could hardly believe it. How are you?"

"Baba," she said, flashing a poor attempt at a smile. "I'm good. Tired. It's been a busy couple of weeks. I'm sorry I haven't been able to write as often."

"It is of no concern," her father said, waving a hand. "We are grateful for the letters we do receive. Just knowing you are safe after your experiences in the wake of the destruction of the Enterprise is all we needed."

"I'm safe, Baba, I promise," she said.

"So, what have you been up to?" he asked as he sat back in his chair. "I am certain that working on the station is not exactly to your taste, but it won't be much longer, will it?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "Work on the Enterprise-A is moving along. They're saying less than six months, now."

"Well, then," he said, as if that solved all her problems. "Does that mean that you will be continuing your five-year mission? You have not said in your letters, so I was not sure if you just did not know."

"They haven't told us yet," she said. "We probably won't know until closer to launch, when we have to start assembling a crew."

"But you will definitely sign on again," he said. 

She noticed it wasn't a question, but she answered anyway. "Of course, I'll sign on again. Serving aboard the Enterprise is all I've ever wanted."

"I know," he said. He raised his hands as if in surrender. "Your mother and I were just wondering if you might be coming home anytime soon. We miss you."

Nyota's lips thinned into a line at the mention of her mother.

"What is it, mdogo?" he asked. "You seem upset."

"I came online as a Guide two weeks ago," she said. She figured it was better to just rip the band-aide off rather than beat around the bush.

Her father paled noticeably. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I am," she said. "I was actually in Medical when it happened, so they were able to get me into an iso suite pretty quickly." She paused and took a breath, finally ready to ask the only question she really needed an answer for. "Why, Baba? Why didn't she tell me?"

"Your mother was… disappointed when she did not come online," he said. "She told me, before we were married, that she was latent because she just had not found her Sentinel yet, and if her Sentinel did come online, she would go to him, no questions asked."

"Does she know that's not how it works?" Nyota asked, completely dumbfounded.

She'd read a lot about Sentinels and Guides since she'd come online, but nothing in all that literature suggested that one came online because of the other. Sentinels came online in response to a threat, either to the Sentinel themselves or to the community at large. Guides came online in direct proportion to the number of Sentinels in the community. Or, as in Nyota's case, as a response to trauma. But never because an individual Sentinel came online.

And compatibility was a thing, but there was no such thing as destined pairs. That was only true in fiction and popular culture.

"M'Umbha had some definite ideas about Sentinels and Guides, but I have no idea where she got them," he said, shaking his head. "I was given access to all the literature at the local Center because it was possible for her to pass on the genes even if she never came online herself. I never agreed with her decision not to tell you children, but she forbade me from discussing it with you."

"Did she think that she couldn't pass on the gene because she remained latent?" Nyota asked.

"Perhaps," her father said. "She never shared her reasoning with me. I regret now that I did not say something to you. I have wrestled with this for years, but I felt it was not my place to tell you. This was your mother's legacy, and in this I could not interfere."

"What about Makena and Kamau?" she asked. "I can't stop being a Guide, Baba. They're going to find out, and when they do, they're going to want to know the truth."

"Your mother's wishes have not changed, mdogo," he said. "If they are to learn the truth, you must tell them. I will support you as best I can, but I think, perhaps, the news would be better coming from you anyway."

Nyota sighed. "I understand. I'm going to tell them to come to me at Yorktown. The Center here has treated me well, and my doctor is well-versed in treating online Guides, especially difficult cases."

"Who is it?" her father asked. "That McCoy fellow you have told me about?"

"Leonard McCoy is actually certified to treat Sentinels because our Captain is an online Sentinel himself," she said. "My doctor is Raia Assanti, Daughter of the Third House of Betazed."

"My goodness," he said. "She is well known throughout the Federation for her work as a healer. It is an honor to be treated by her."

"Doctor McCoy sent for her when he realized what had happened to me," she said. "The crew… we're like family. He took care of me when I couldn't take care of myself. And my Captain has been my advocate, both because he's my Captain and because he's the strongest Sentinel in the quadrant."

"Then you are fortunate to have such people in your life, Nyota," he said. "I am grateful for them, since it seems I have done you no favors in that regard."

"Baba," she said, admonishing him without saying the words. She huffed out a sigh. "If Makena and Kamau come to Yorktown, will you come too?"

"You would wish me to come?" he said, surprise writ large on his face. "Even after everything that has happened?"

"You're my father," she whispered. She cleared her throat and straightened up a bit. "Sentinels and Guides, we take care of our own. You and Makena and Kamau are my family. They'll take care of you, too."

There wasn't a whole lot she was sure of in her new situation, but she knew that for sure. Jim Kirk would go to the wall and through it for her and anyone he deemed important. He'd done it more than once in his Starfleet career, at great personal cost. If she asked him, he'd take the ship off to Earth at the first opportunity and collect her family for her. She knew that without even having to ask.

"I will consider it," her father said. His face took on a sad, wistful smile. "It is good to see you looking so well. You tell that Captain of yours to take good care of my daughter. I love you, mdogo. Never doubt that."

The screen went dark before she could answer him, but she thought maybe he already knew how much she loved him. She'd basically offered to kidnap him from her mother, and if that wasn't a clear enough sign, well, she'd send him a letter every day for a year reiterating it.

She pressed her hands to her cheeks, finding them wet with tears she hadn't realized she'd been shedding. The whole conversation had been heartbreaking and disconcerting. Her emotions were in a tumult, and she could feel her shields trembling with the effort to contain them.

Without overthinking it, she sent a message to Raia. She needed to get a handle on this or she'd end up living the rest of her life in a gilded cage, and that she couldn't do. She had too many things left to see and do to allow her Guide gifts to ruin her life.

~o~

Nyota took a deep breath and pressed the door chime. A moment later, the door swished open to reveal her Captain—no, this wasn't her Captain. This man was definitely Jim Kirk.

"Nyota," he said, surprise making his eyebrows climb his forehead as he leaned against the doorjamb.

"Jim," she said. She tucked her hands behind her back so she wouldn't be tempted to reach out for him. "Can I come in?"

"That depends," Jim said. He crossed his arms, something she thought might have been a protective gesture, giving off a definite 'keep away' vibe. "Not to be rude, but why are you here?"

It took a conscious effort to not reach out to him empathically, because she desperately needed to know what he was feeling right then, but she'd promised Raia that she'd use her words.

"I wanted to talk to you about bonding," she said.

Jim's eyes widened in surprise. "Then maybe you'd better come in."

He stepped aside, allowing Nyota to enter his quarters. She glanced around as she moved through the space. It was basically the same layout as her quarters, just flipped. He'd accumulated a bunch of stuff, same as she had over the last few months since the destruction of Enterprise. It made the space more welcoming, somehow.

"Would you like something to drink?" he asked.

"Water would be great," she said. 

She settled on the couch and waited for him to return with her glass of water. She didn't really need it, but she could see that he needed a minute to compose himself after her bold declaration. She hadn't planned to just blurt it out like that, but beating around the bush just wasn't an option, not when she was as nervous about this as he appeared to be.

"Here you go," he said, handing off the glass and taking his own to the chair across from her. 

She took a sip of water as she watched him do the same. The room was filled with an awkward silence that she knew she'd have to be the one to break.

"So, bonding."

Nyota practically jumped out of her skin. She wasn't expecting him to start the conversation, something that was clear in the smirk on his face.

"May I ask you why you offered to bond with me?"

"What I said before still stands," he said. "You are strong and fierce, and so compassionate that it sometimes takes my breath away. I don't want this to be the thing that takes all that away from you. Bonding would serve Enterprise well, as you know, but I don't want you to think it's only for the ship. It's also because I want to see you become all you're meant to be."

"I never knew you thought those things about me," she said. "You never said."

"I hit on you the first time we met," he said, shaking his head. "Not exactly the best beginning to a professional relationship, much less a friendship."

"To be fair, I didn't really give you a chance to do much of anything else," she said.

"No, Hendorff and his goon squad interrupted and beat the living crap out of me," he said. "Not that I didn't deserve it."

"And now he's your biggest fan," Nyota said with a smile. 

"I don't think I'd go that far." Jim glanced down at his glass, then back up at her. "My turn. Tell me why you and Spock broke it off."

She took a breath, held it for a moment, then let it go. She set her glass down on the coffee table as she nudged off her shoes. Tucking her feet up under her, she settled into the couch. When he raised an eyebrow, she just shrugged. Might as well get comfortable.

"Now that I'm online, it's given me a chance to look back at my interactions with Spock in a new light," she said. "I—I'm honestly ashamed of some of the things I did. I mean, he'd just lost his whole planet and I hugged him. He must have been so overwhelmed by his own emotions, and there I am, bleeding my grief all over him."

"I'm sure he understood your intent," Jim said.

"His control got so thin he nearly beat you to death," Nyota said, unable to keep the distress out of her voice. "It doesn't matter if he understood my intent. My emotions were a burden he shouldn't have had to carry on top of his own." She paused to take a deep breath. "And the one time we mind melded… it was awful. I thought it was just that I'd never done it before, but now…"

"Now, you think it's because you were a latent Guide, which made you two fundamentally incompatible," Jim said. "You had no way of knowing that at the time."

"No, I suppose not," she said. "But the truth is that he's going to need someone who can bond with him, and I'm not that person. I never was, I just didn't realize it at the time."

"Fair enough," he said. "For what it's worth, you did the right thing, even if it wasn't the easiest thing in the world to do."

"Thank you," she said. "That means a lot, coming from you."

"Raia said you were doing well on your own," he said after a brief pause. "Why the sudden interest in bonding?"

"I was relieved when she told me I was doing well on my own," Nyota said. "Doing something because I want to versus doing it because I have no choice… well, there's really no comparison. If I get to choose who my Sentinel is, I'd choose you in a heartbeat."

"Really," Jim said. "I'm going to say something, and I don't want you to take this the wrong way. You don't really like me much, do you?"

She laughed. "I didn't when we first met. And I didn't like you at the Academy, either. Or during the Nero incident. I had my doubts during the Khan situation, for sure. And Krall—"

"Okay, okay," he said, holding his hand up to stop her. "I think we've established that you don't like me."

"I didn't like you at all when we first met, as I said." She scrunched up her nose. "But after I came online, I started going through those memories again. I mean, I knew you were an online Sentinel back then, but I didn't really understand what that meant."

"And do you now?"

"Yes, I do," she said. "I understand that you can't just sit back and do nothing in a crisis. I understand that when someone attacks you or those you've claimed as your own, you'll return fire with fire. I understand that what I thought was recklessness was actually your instincts pressing on you to act. And I'm so sorry that I didn't understand that before."

"Not your fault," he said, shaking his head. "There was no way you could have known what it's like for me as a Sentinel to face that type of threat. I'm not even sure I understood it fully until then."

"I'm honestly not sure how this bonding thing is supposed to go," she said. "Am I supposed to wait for you to ask, or can I ask you? I never was able to find anything in all the reading materials I had access to, and Raia was no help at all."

Jim chuckled. "That's because it's different for every pair. Lucky for you, I'm not much bothered by the Guide taking the lead." He smirked and waggled his eyebrows. "Just one question: platonic or sexual."

"Sexual," she said, raising her own eyebrow. "Of course."

She watched as he swallowed visibly.

~o~

If she thought his living room held a reflection of his personality, his bedroom was fairly dripping with it. Clothing thrown negligently over a chair in the corner. A 3-D chess set on the table near the window. Actual paper books piled on the nightstand. Deep blue linens on the bed, which was a surprise because she'd have thought he'd be unconcerned with the color of his sheets.

She wandered over to the chess set to find a game in progress. It was easy to imagine him sitting there playing with a friend, or maybe just by himself, reading a book while he sipped a cup of coffee.

"I apologize for the mess," he said as he moved about the room, gathering up clothes and shoving them into the refresher slot. "I wasn't expecting company."

"It's fine," she said. "It gives the place character."

"My dirty laundry is character?" he asked, nose scrunched up. "Don't tell Bones that. He despairs that I'll ever be grown up enough not to leave my socks on the floor."

"He's a doctor," she said. "His place is probably neat as a pin."

"It is," Jim said, shaking his head. "Gives me the creeps walking in there. Too sterile for me. I bet yours are just as tidy."

Nyota shrugged. "They're neat, yes. But I still leave things laying around. Mostly tea mugs. I can't seem to remember to take them back to the kitchen."

"I think you and I will get along fine," he said, a soft, affectionate smile crossing his face.

"Yeah?" she asked.

He crossed the room to stand in front of her. She'd worn her hair down, so when he reached out and tucked a slice of hair behind her ear, she inhaled her surprise. She could feel buzzing in the back of her mind, and realized it was probably him. That was reassuring in its way; it meant they'd have an easy time bonding. After everything she'd been through, easy was good.

"I'm going to undress you, Nyota," he said. "I need to do a full imprint, but I'm going to start with sight first."

"Have you already imprinted smell and sound?" she asked. When he blushed, she shook her head, a smile teasing at her lips. "Jim. Don't be ashamed of that. From what I understand, we're quite compatible. It was probably hard for you to stick to just those two senses."

"It was," he said. "You were nibbling on your thumb before I came in to the iso suite to talk to you. I wanted to…" He shrugged.

"Nibble on my thumb," she asked with a raised eyebrow. "Or my lips?"

"Both," he said. 

She chuckled. "I give you permission to do what you need to. I've been told I'll probably enjoy it, so I'm not opposed."

"Alright," he said, voice gone husky.

She could feel herself reacting to his very presence as he peeled her tunic off her, followed by her pants. Standing there in just her underwear, she should have felt exposed, but the brush of his fingers over her skin just made her feel… cherished. She'd never felt that way before, not even—well, she wasn't going to bring past lovers into this moment. That wouldn't serve either of them.

Finally, Jim peeled her bra and panties off and got down on his knees, running lips and fingers over every square inch of her skin. Some places he raised goosebumps and some he set on fire. He circled around to her back and repeated the process until he'd explore all that there was to explore of her.

When she felt like he'd finally wound down, she pulled him close, cradling his head against her chest as he knelt in front of her. He was trembling with the effort to hold himself back, and she loved him for it. 

She pulled back, tipping his head up so she could look him in the eye. "Don't hold back on my account. I need all of you, Sentinel."

He surged up and took her lips in a searing kiss, giving no quarter as he pressed into her mouth with his tongue, invading her space and inviting her into his. She pushed her fingers through his hair, grabbing on and tilting his head for a better angle. His chuckle drew her back.

"I should have known you'd be aggressive," he said. 

She could see the joy shining in his eyes and it made her blood sing.

"You haven't seen aggressive yet," she said. She pushed and prodded him until he was naked and sprawled on his back on the bed. She climbed over him and settled astride his hips, grinding her sex down on his swollen cock. "This is aggressive."

"Don't be a cock-tease, Ny," he said.

The nickname brought her up short, but not in a bad way. Spock had never nicknamed her at all; he'd been too properly Vulcan to do anything of the sort. But hearing Jim do it pleased her. 

She reached down and stroked his cock, finding it hard and leaking. Without hesitating at all, she rose up and sank down, taking his full length inside her in one stroke. When he was buried to the hilt, she pitched forward, hands on his chest, breathing hard.

"Not a cock-tease, Jim," she said. "Never gonna get laid if I do that."

Without warning, he flipped them over, his cock never moving from inside her. Suddenly, she was looking up to see his determined face hovering over her. She wound her legs around him, pulling him closer still.

"You ready?" she asked.

He pulled back a little and pushed in, sparking pleasure deep inside her. "Ready whenever you are."

She nodded and thinned her shields bit by bit. She could feel more of him the more she opened up. He was a wonder, all fierce determination and tender care. She reached out to him and wrapped all that she was around him, pushing deeper and deeper into him. It barely registered with her when he finally started to move. The pleasure of being in his mind far outweighed the pleasure of her body in that moment.

He groaned as she raked her fingernails over his scalp, the sensation echoing through her mind. It was startling because she hadn't expected to share physical impressions as well as emotions.

"Oh god, that's so good," he muttered. 

He kissed and licked and nibbled as much of her as he could reach as he continued to press into her. The slow roll of his hips sped up moment by moment until his hips were snapping against hers. She bowed up off the bed, pleasure arcing through her body and echoing in her mind.

Her orgasm took her by surprise, nearly whiting her out with its intensity. It wasn't until she came back to herself a few minutes later to find Jim slumped on top of her that she realized it must have been the combination of both their orgasms that she felt.

"I'm not sure I'll be able to take it if that's what it's like every time," he muttered into her neck. 

She laughed, stretching as much as she could while his weight still pressing her into the mattress. "Would it go to your head if I told you that was the best sex I've ever had?"

"It might," Jim said, pulling back to look at her. He dropped a kiss on her lips. "But I promise I'll keep at it until you feel the earth move under you."

"If the earth is moving under me, it's because the station is about to blow up," Nyota said. "And if that's the case, we'd better not be having sex."

"I think the end of the world is the best time to be having sex," he said with a wink.

"Agree to disagree," she said, shaking her head. "But if you can rock my world on the regular, I'll call it good."

"You okay?" he asked.

He rolled to his side and wrapped an arm around her, snuggling in close. She was delighted to find that he liked to cuddle.

"I'm good," she said. "I don't need to ask you, though. You're basically radiating contentment right now."

He wrinkled his nose. "I'm never going to be able to get away with anything with you again, am I?"

"No, sorry," she said, not at all sorry that she'd be able to keep a closer eye on him from now on.

"I guess I'll survive," he said. "I'll send a message to Bones in a bit. Let him know we'll be nesting for a couple of days. He'll need to notify Commodore Paris and the Center. They'll expect us to come register sooner rather than later."

"I know," she said. "But for right now, I just want to sleep. And then more sex. That was fun."

Jim flopped back and laughed, long and loud. "I never expected this playfulness from you. I like it."

Nyota pushed up on one elbow so she could see him. "And I never expected you to be so attentive. I think we have a lot to learn about each other."

"And now we have all the time we need to do that," he said, reaching out to caress her cheek. "I think I'm going to like being bonded to you, Guide."

"The feeling is entirely mutual, Sentinel," she said. She captured his hand and pressed a kiss to his palm. 

~o~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> msichana wangu mtamu: my sweet girl  
> Baba: Daddy  
> mdogo: young one


	5. Chapter 5

~o~

"The Enterprise was more than just a ship, she was our home," Jim said. "No other ship could take her place in our hearts. She served us well, and protected us to the end. We mourn her loss, even as we know that time must move on, as do we."

He looked out over the gathered crowd. The launch ceremony for the Enterprise-A was full of the kind of pomp and circumstance that the launch of the previous Enterprise lacked. And while he could see the sadness in the faces of the crew, he could also see the excitement building. They were just days from their first mission aboard the new ship, and Jim was so ready.

"The Enterprise-A is a new ship, and we haven't gotten to know all her secrets yet, but we will. She will serve us with distinction and we will serve her with all the care and loyalty we have. As we set out into the unknown, may we find fair winds and following seas."

He stepped away from the podium to the sound of applause. Commodore Paris closed the ceremony with some pointed words about not wrecking this ship, too. Jim just rolled his eyes. Every Captain had to wreck his ship at least once; it was a rite of passage for Captains, as far as he was concerned.

His gaze searched the crowd, looking for familiar faces. Of course, his bridge crew sat in the front row. Spock, Sulu and Chekov, and Bones and Nyota next to them. He could see her spirit animal—a beautiful raven she called Rafiki, after a character in a movie she'd seen—shimmering in and out of view on her shoulder. He could feel his own spirit animal—a contrary female coyote named Koda—leaning into his leg. 

The spirit animal thing was relatively new; they'd appeared about a day after they'd bonded. He'd expected that to happen, though he was still dubious about the whole thing. The spirits of Sentinels and Guides who return in the form of an animal to help Sentinels and Guides access and use their gifts? Weird probably didn't cover it, but he was getting use to it. Sort of.

As he stretched his vision beyond the Starfleet personnel seated nearest the stage, he could pick out others he recognized. Raia was there, looking pleased. She's signed on to the Enterprise to continue to work with both Nyota and himself to hone their gifts and maximize their potential as a bonded pair. The way she looked at Bones like she wanted to eat him alive was just a bonus. He'd give them six months at the outside before they were fully involved.

Beside Raia, Nyota's family sat proudly watching the ceremony. Her sister and brother had both tested positive for the Guide gene, and were both working with the Center to monitor their status. They'd both been shocked and angry that their mother had hidden something so fundamental as that, but being together had helped. Their father had eventually joined them, though he wouldn't talk about what had happened with his wife that caused him to pick up and move across the quadrant. 

Finally, the ceremony ended and the crowd began to disburse. Jim endured the congratulations of the Starfleet brass as he waited for his family—his crew—to make their way to him.

"Easy, there, Jim," Bones said. "You look like you're going to explode."

"I hate these things," he said, shaking his head. "You know that. They trot out the Sentinel Captain and all the platitudes. Meanwhile, I can practically hear them bitching about how primitive I am."

"Have a drink," Bones said. He grabbed a glass of champagne off the tray of a passing waiter and handed it over to his Captain. "I know you can't get drunk, but I promise it'll take the edge off."

"You said the same thing to Jaylah," Jim said, raising an eyebrow even as he took a sip. "Didn't work for her any better than it's going to work for me."

"Relax, Jim. It's over and in a couple more days we'll officially be starting the back half of the five-year mission."

"Thank god," Jim said.

"Is he climbing out of his skin, yet?" Nyota asked as she joined them.

"Oh yeah," Bones said. "I'll let you talk him down. I'm gonna go see if they have anything stronger than champagne."

He wandered off, muttering about Sentinels. Jim glanced at Nyota, who was hiding a smile in her glass. Bones wasn't ever going to have the best bedside manner, especially when it came to his Captain, but he couldn't fault his care of the crew, and especially the two of them. He scanned the crowd, spotting Raia headed over to the bar area where Bones had landed.

"I give them six months, tops," Jim muttered.

Nyota giggled. "Possibly less. She's got him in her sights; he's not going to know what hit him."

"If she waits until we're underway, he won't be able to run," Jim said.

"Aren't you supposed to be his friend?" Nyota asked.

"And as his very best friend, I'm trying to get him laid," he said. "You never know, it might improve his demeanor if he were getting sex on the regular."

"You mean, like it did for you?" she asked with one eyebrow raised.

Jim pulled her close, wrapping an arm around her slim waist as he buried his nose in her hair and inhaled her scent. He wasn't subtle, that was certain, but he could feel her pleasure in his possessive display because he wasn't trying to establish territory. He was only seeking the comfort his Guide could provide, and he knew she approved of that.

"I'm not going to apologize for wanting him to be happy," Jim said quietly. "I can testify first-hand how much better my life is since I met you. I have a job I love, lifelong friends and the perfect Guide for me. I'm blessed and I know it, and I want him to know what that's like. After everything he's been through, I think he deserves a little happiness."

"I think we all deserve happiness," Nyota said. "And once we get underway, we'll have time to enjoy it. Just don't push him. Raia will wear him down eventually, but if he doesn't come to it on his own, it's not going to work."

"You're no fun," he said, but he knew she could feel his amusement through their bond so he wasn't worried. He took a deep breath and shifted so he could see the ship. "You ready for this?"

"Yeah," she said, smiling. "She's a fine ship, and we have the best crew in the fleet. And the best Captain. I think we're ready to take on the galaxy again."

"Agreed," he said. "Just a few more days and we'll be underway."

Nyota's sigh of contentment washed over him. Jim couldn't wait to get back out into the black, but he also worried that it was too soon after their bonding. They'd talked about it, though, and Nyota was certain that they could handle it. And with support from Bones and Raia, they were better off than most Sentinel and Guide pairs. 

Together they were everything they needed to be for their ship and their crew. And in the end, that was all that mattered.

~Finis

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rafiki means "friend" in Kiswahili (if Google Translate is to be believed), and Koda means "friend" in the language of the Sioux. I thought those names were most appropriate. /grins/


End file.
